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Advice selling an amp. Suggestions than Craigslist?


saturn

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I've been contemplating selling my Carvin amp for over a year now. It's just too big and loud for what I need. And now that I bought the PRS amp, I really need to sell it. At 85 lbs, I really don't want to hassle shipping it, so that kinda leaves out eBay and Reverb.

I put it on Craigslist, but all I get are scammy replies. One guy wants to give me cashiers check while his assistant handles the detail. Another says his mother wants the amp and can I email her to set it up. DELETE! 

 Anyone have other ideas? Thanks

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Local Store  if you have any that will give you a fair price (not GC).  Reverb and only do local pickup.  If you live in a smaller town or city it may limit how may people will be interested. And it depends on how far you might be willing to drive to meet half way if you agree to that. I just sold a guitar on Reverb the other day and the guy was 50 miles away. Asked if he could forgo shipping and meet half way. Yep. I don't have t ship it and he gets to see it on the spot. Of course meet in a public place. We met at the library on the College Of William and Mary.  Lots of people and they have campus police in case anything dumb happens. Police Station parking lots are recommend.

Edited by Sgt. Pepper
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I've given up on Craigslist. The cashier check scams are one thing. What made me despair was when I was selling a really nice US Strat, reluctantly, to help pay for a transmission repair. A man showed up at my house, played it, put it in its case, agreed to buy it, then when it came time to give me the cash wandered out to his truck (I made him leave the guitar in my house), reappeared with a huge, beat-up looking tube stack of some sort, and began arguing for a straight swap. He got very angry when I said, "The mechanic doesn't take old amps, just dollars." He got back in his truck cursing about idiots who don't know what a great deal they're getting. It got quite nasty for a minute, because he really wanted that Strat. In the end a friend bought the Strat, and all was well.

When I sell gear now (rarely, thankfully), I give a photo and details to my wife who sells it on some sort of Facebook market thing. Not sure how it works, because I don't "Facebook." But I've found sensible and serious buyers that way, for a couple of things - some guitar related, others not.

 

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3 hours ago, Lord Summerisle said:

I've given up on Craigslist. The cashier check scams are one thing. What made me despair was when I was selling a really nice US Strat, reluctantly, to help pay for a transmission repair. A man showed up at my house, played it, put it in its case, agreed to buy it, then when it came time to give me the cash wandered out to his truck (I made him leave the guitar in my house), reappeared with a huge, beat-up looking tube stack of some sort, and began arguing for a straight swap. He got very angry when I said, "The mechanic doesn't take old amps, just dollars." He got back in his truck cursing about idiots who don't know what a great deal they're getting. It got quite nasty for a minute, because he really wanted that Strat. In the end a friend bought the Strat, and all was well.

When I sell gear now (rarely, thankfully), I give a photo and details to my wife who sells it on some sort of Facebook market thing. Not sure how it works, because I don't "Facebook." But I've found sensible and serious buyers that way, for a couple of things - some guitar related, others not.

 

After reading this, I dunno....  I think when I'm ready to move on from something, I'm just going to take it out back and burn it...  people are nucking futz...

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On 1/13/2020 at 12:15 PM, MichaelT said:

My friend and I have had good luck on Facebook Marketplace.  Meet in neutral location with lots of people around and a friend with you. Cash only.

Oh lord, I tried that and the weirdos came out of the woodwork. One day I will tell the stories when I get out of therapy. Until then, I'm sticking to Ebay and Reverb.

Edited by Big Bill
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Anything other than cash-in-hand for the deal, a scam.  No cashier's checks, no PayPal...  NOTHING other than cold, hard cash in hand.  Being that you don't want to eat shipping charges - don't blame you and worrying about mishaps during shipping - you're stuck with local ads and consignments.  Consignment is a great option for the fee because someone can be in the store and try it out - entice the sale a bit more.  Also don't have to host people coming over to your place to try it out if you're not too keen on this happening.  But, I've done CL for a while and I don't mind having guests come over to see my merchandise.  My advice here is to get everything ready to showcase comfortably so you can limit where they can go in your house if you so desire.  Maybe you're going to have to keep lowering the price until you get bites.  Don't respond to the tire kickers and scammers.  You should know who the right buyer is.  Typically, they will call you and have questions.  Tire kickers send emails - so do low-ballers.  Scammers try to ask for cashier's checks and tell you movers are coming to pick it up.  You should NEVER have to share ANY personal information other than your address to see the sale through.  Also, you might get the guy who wants to do last minute negotiating on the price after you have already negotiated a price.  When they do this as I'm not desperate for the cash, I counter with more money than what I was asking.  They get the idea where I'm going with it.  Stand your ground.  That's what you deal with when you list ads.  Oh, and delivering an 85lb amp is also something I would never volunteer for either. 

So, these are your options AFAIK.  Another thing is if you go CL route, I have found it somewhat useful to spell out your phone number.  Whenever I have listed it outright - numerically - I get the scammers.  Protect your interests.  I hate to hear about people getting ripped off.  Good luck! 

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On ‎1‎/‎14‎/‎2020 at 5:05 PM, Big Bill said:

Oh lord, I tried that and the weirdos came out of the woodwork. One day I will tell the stories when I get out of therapy. Until then, I'm sticking to Ebay and Reverb.

Then again, we were both buying and not selling. Maybe I'm the weird one. :D

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I live in a suburb of Chicago. There are a few local websites that are neighborhood sites that are within 15 to 30 minutes from me. It is nice because those that are looking at the sites are local and are able to travel to check out the items for sale. Try googling “Bookoo” and see if there is a site local to your area. Also, they are community sites so you can sniff out the scammers (usually scumbags from outside your area) because nobody near your area is going to pay with a cashier check or want to do shipping. I have used the bookoo site for both buying and selling with good results.

Just a thought for other options. Good luck and be safe

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12 hours ago, saturn said:

Thanks for the replies.  I've had it on CL and Reverb as Local Pickup. So far nothing. Maybe I'll try the consignment thing. I just think these monster 2x12 combos are not in demand any longer.   

well, no.. probably not. 

Try selling passive PA speakers!!   Almost Impossible.   Had an old sound tech PA, two 15s/horn and powered mixer.

 I wound up donating it to  a band comprised of high school kids,   the person who does my setup and repair work taught a few of these kids.  They were thrilled to have it, and I was able to get out of my hair.

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